THE ITINERARY OF ANTONINE.
In ascertaining the Roman names of the stations on the line of the Wall, reference has hitherto been made only to the Notitia Imperii. Another document has come down to our time, of which we may now avail ourselves—the Itinerary of Antonine. It does not mention any of the stations immediately upon the Wall, but names some to the north and and south of it. It is a sort of road-book of the whole Roman empire, and is supposed to have been made by one of the emperors who bore the name of Antoninus. Horsley thinks that Caracalla is best entitled to be accounted its author. That part of it which relates to Britain contains fifteen routes; the towns upon each are named, and the distances from one to another given in Roman miles. The aid which such a document gives in ascertaining the ancient designations of the stations that occur in it is obvious. The first ‘Iter’ is entitled ‘A Route from the Limit, that is, from the Wall, to Prætorium, 156 miles.’ It begins thus—
| From | Bremenium to Corstopitum | XX | miles. |
| To | Vindomora | IX | ” |
| To | Vinovia | XIX | ” |
The second ‘Iter’ also begins at the Wall, and goes to the Ritupian-port, Richborough, 481 miles.
The first portion only, of it also, bears upon our present investigation.
| From | Blatum Bulgium to Castra Exploratorum | XII | miles. |
| To | Luguvallium | XII | ” |
| To | Voreda | XIV | ” |
The tenth ‘Iter,’ which is from Glanoventa to Mediolanum, 150 miles, begins with towns which are supposed to be in the vicinity of the Wall.
| From | Glanoventa to Galava | XVIII | miles. |
| To | Alione (or Alionis) | XII | ” |
That Rochester is the Bremenium of the first route, is established by the discovery of an altar in it, which professes to be erected by the duplares of the exploratory troops stationed at Bremenium. In no position would exploratory troops be more needed than here, and no place could be more appropriately fixed upon as the starting point of an ‘Iter’ than this. Several of the inscriptions belonging to this station bear the name of Caracalla. Both Bremenium and Habitancum seem to have undergone important repairs in the time of this emperor.
Eight miles south of High Rochester, and on the line of Watling-street, is another Roman station.